The Badu Building is located in the City of
Llano,
Llano County, Texas. It was added to the
in 1980, and designated a
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1981. It has also been known as the Badu House and as the Carol Phelan Building. It is now being operated as a restaurant and private event space under the name Badu 1891.
Designed by Larramour and Watson, the Badu Building was erected in 1890 by the Llano Improvement and Furnace Company, as the location of the newly chartered First National Bank. The building is constructed of local granite and locally manufactured red brick. The marble-floored street level with its carved wooden interiors were the public access portion of the bank. The second floor was designed for office space. The Llano Improvement and Furnace Company had been organized with the specific purpose of promoting land development in the area, but went bankrupt ''circa'' 1894. The building was sold to N. J. Badu in 1898 at a public auction. Until 1980, the building had been continuously owned by members of Badu's family. From 1907 to 1912, the building was leased to the First State Bank of Llano. The Badu family sold it in 1980.
It has been used as a
bed and breakfast facility, and as a restaurant.
N.J. Badu
N. J. Badu was a native of
Nancy, France
Nancy ; Lorraine Franconian: ''Nanzisch'' is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the northeastern Departments of France, French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle. It was the capital of the Duchy of Lorraine, which was Lorraine and Barrois, an ...
. Educated and trained as a
geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...
in Europe, Badu emigrated
from France to Mexico. From there, he traveled to
, eventually finding employment in Texas as an instructor of the
French language
French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Nor ...
, in the
Lamar County town of
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. He married a woman from the same county by the name of Charlie Neal. After a subsequent career change, he gained some experience at hotel management in
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
and
Austin
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
. During his tenure in Paris, Badu had heard much about the geology of Llano. He was hired by the Llano Improvement and Furnace Company to manage the Algona Hotel, the area's grand upscale establishment. When the Llano Improvement and Furnace Company went bankrupt, the Algona closed. Badu became employed as a manager of the
Driskill Hotel
The Driskill, a Romanesque-style building completed in 1886, in Austin, but maintained his home in Llano. Badu became a full-time mineralogist, with his laboratory based in Llano.
See also
*
*
Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Llano County
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Badu Building
Commercial buildings completed in 1890
Buildings and structures in Llano County, Texas
Commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas
Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks
National Register of Historic Places in Llano County, Texas